Blinded
by thehugbandit
Summary: The city is under attack by unknown forces. It comes in three waves: rain, light, and shadows people. With innocents being mercilessly murdered for their souls, Kid and the Thompson sisters decide to take a stand to save their home and everyone in it. But what they encounter- what they find- isn't at all what they expected. *This story takes place a year before the anime/manga*
1. Prologue

_Beware the Witching Hour_

 _Beware the darkest moon_

 _When the midnight flower_

 _And the blackest death_

 _Suddenly decides to bloom_

 _Beware the Shadow Man_

 _Beware the brightest light_

 _When those who take a stand_

 _And those who run and flee_

 _Suddenly are consumed by night_

 _Beware my children, beware_

 _The Witching Hour, the Shadow Man_

 _The darkest moon, the brightest light_

 _And most of all, beware of her_

 _And all she dares to say_

 ** _Author's Notes:_**

Hey guys! Thank you for stopping by to check out my story. I really appreciate it. I know my poem isn't the best in the world, but if you want to give me a chance move right on to the next chapter and I swear I'll make it up to you! I promise it gets better. I know there's thousands of other stories you can pick up and they're all probs a whole lot better than mine, but for whatever reason (probably the awesome book cover) you chose me! And for that, I love you forever and will claim that you are, without a doubt, the most amazing readers in the universe. So, thank you! (Please read chapter one. Please!)

Also, if you decide you like this story a lot, check it out on Wattpad. I update my Wattpad every Monday and Friday, but figured I'd put it up here too just in case anyone was interested. To keep things interesting, I'll update this cite every Tuesday and Saturday. I know it's lame, but I've gotta stay loyal to the original cite. The story is under the same name (Blinded) by me (thehugbandit) and it does come with pictures and music. Yes, that's kind of a bride. I think I'm starting to reek with desperation! Yikes, let me stop myself before I lose you forever!

Moving on, please don't be a silent reader. I love criticism, I do. And I know (especially in the first chapter) I have a lot of spelling and grammar mistakes. So if that's your forte, have at me! The more you educate me, the better! Also, I'm open to ideas and just general comments. Chat me up, I'm nice I swear!

Anyhow, thanks again for taking the time to read this. Now on to the first chapter and I'll leave ya alone! No more author notes for a while!

Peace, Love, Soul Eater,

thehugbandit


	2. Chapter One

-Liz- Tuesday -3:00 AM-

"What is _this_?"

My voice cracks under the pressure of the night, which admittedly isn't the most attractive quality in a lady, but I can't help it. As I step outside the comfort of the bar and hold my hands out, I notice something odd. The rain. It looks normal enough from a distance, but once closer it's easy to see that instead of the clear blue you'd expect in water, this _substance_ is pitch black. Another thing I note is the hopeless lack of clouds. Now, I'll be the first to admit I'm not the most educated person in the world, but if I remember anything from school it's that you need something to hold water in. In the case of rain, that's clouds; and as far as I can tell, there isn't a cloud in sight. I can still spy the faint silhouette of the moon grinning in the distance without the misty fog of a cloudy night. In spite of all of this, the dark droplets are _still_ falling.

"Liz? That doesn't look safe." The subtle voice attempts to pull my attention away, but fails. "Why don't you come back inside with me and I'll buy you another drink, eh?" Again, I ignore the nameless guy behind me and frown. Why can't I _feel_ the rain? It just slips past my skin, like shadows. "Liz?" The man tries a third time, this time more pleading. I roll my eyes and retract my hand, letting my arm fall slack at my side. "Liz, come on, babe."

Babe? Seriously? Immediately, by blood begins to boil and all I can hear is that degrading word echoing through my head. Goal achieved, he now has my full attention. Before I can fully comprehend what is happening, my hands ball up into fists and I'm practically murdering the man with my eyes. "I'm sorry," I try to sound polite but I know I've fallen short the second his muddy brown eyes cloud, "I don't think I heard you correctly. Did you just call me _babe_?"

He looks scared which sends twisted stings of pleasure tickling through my body. I know his fear is what's preventing him from meeting my gaze and it's also what's transformed his hands into the most interesting thing in the world for him. He sits there, right in the chair I left him at a few minutes ago, twiddling his thumbs and biting his lip trying to find the right words to say. Little does he know, there are no right words. Not anymore. Not since he called me 'babe'.

I slowly draw my feet across the floor closing the gap between us. The bar is mostly deserted on this strange and late Tuesday night, but the two people who are still here have turned to us. And they aren't the only ones. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the lone bartender pretending to clean a glass that had turned spotless thirty seconds ago is also spying on us. I shake them out of my mind and focus on the task at hand.

"Let's try this again." I'm so close to him I can smell the alcohol in his breath, and I try to smile- really and truly I do- but it feels fake and condescending. The man, of course, notices the tension rising and swallows hard. I cross my hands behind my back and lean in, drinking in his putrid scent. "I said, 'did you call me babe'? Now, I expect an honest answer."

"I, uh-" He stammers. "I, uh-"

Okay, so waiting has never been a strong quality of mine. And this guy, he's really trying my patience. Babbling nonsense words like an idiot, too much of a coward to come out and admit he called me- a classy lady and not some bimbo- 'babe'. Without warning, my right hand shoots out and grips the scruff of his neck. I roughly pull him in and breath heavily into his ear, "Never call me babe." And let go.

What you'd expect to happen _does_ happen. The man, startled by, nearly falls out of his chair. The same muddy brown eyes he used to lust after me he is now using to scan for an exit. When he realizes the only escape is behind me, he bolts leaving the chair rocking behind him.

"Psycho bitch!" He spits after me before disappearing into the bizarre stormy night. I close my eyes and smirk. Like it bothers me? I'd been called worse by better people.

"Do you need another drink?" The bartender asks after a minute. I shake my head no and slip into a stool in front of him.

"I'm okay, Tony." I sigh planting my cheek into my palm. I shift my attention back to the window and gaze curiously outside. It's still raining. "What do you think that is? It's odd, isn't it?"

Tony flings his cleaning rag over his shoulder and follows my gaze. "I don't know, kid." He tries his best to sound indifferent, but I can hear the clear concern hidden beneath his words. I nod and straighten my back. He returns to wiping down the bar.

I want to say something more. I want to point out the fact that the rain isn't wet and it doesn't have a form- but I don't get a chance to. A bright white light floods the bar forcing me to shield my eyes. For second, it feels like day- only brighter. And something in my stomach tells me it's time to hide.

"What the-" Tony starts but the light fades and with it, his voice.

"What do you think _now_?" I growl. "Something is definitely going on, huh?"

Tony's at a loss for words and I can't tear my eyes from the window, not even for a second. Something tells me this is just the beginning but of what, I'm not sure. I don't want to hide anymore. I can't. In a beat I'm on my feet racing for the door.

"You forgot to pay!" Tony shouts.

"Put it on my tab!" I call back, but I doubt he's heard me. Already, I'm in the streets.

My heart is pumping so fast I can feel it in my ears. My mind is wild with fear, and a strange tingling sensation of Deja Vu is rippling through my body so loud I know I can't ignore it. I have to go back to the manor _now._ Waking up my sister and that psychopath who pulled us off the streets is my top priority. And I have to move fast- faster than I've ever moved in my entire life.

As I turn the corner, the light floods the street again instantly blinding me and the poor fools who dared stepping outside to see what was happening after the first initial attack. I can hear a couple shrieking in terror as it fades back to night. My feet don't slow as my eyes try adjusting. I blink rapidly, barely able to make out where I'm going. I pray it doesn't happen again, the white light, and that I'm able to make it to Kid and my sister before it's too late. But my prayer goes unanswered.

The light returns and it's pulsing now in a rhythm I don't understand. It's night for a second, and the next it's day all over again. White then black. Repeat cycle. My head is pounding. The rapid change is too much for my brain to handle. A complete and total sensory overload. I close my eyes hoping it'll help, but it doesn't. The light is simply too much. I collapse. I'm so close. So, so close.

"Liz!"

My ears perk up. I recognize the sound. The gruff way he draws out the 'I' in my name, the agitated way he holds onto the 'z'. Man, I swear I've never been so happy to hear him speak!

"Kid!" I shout back, worried my voice will be lost in the chaos.

"Liz? Where are you?" He growls. I freeze, and as my body slowly ices over the happiness begins to turn to anger because, lo and behold! He's not worried about me, no, why would he be? He's pissed. Completely livid (I can only imagine) I, an adult, snuck out of his 'perfect' house. "Where have you been!" Okay, so maybe I'm not technically an adult, but I _am_ older than him which should count for something, right? So why is he so mad! I should be mad that he's mad and now, great. Fan-freaking-tastic. I am mad! I'm pissed! The city is under some sort of weird light attack and Kid and I are freaking pissed at each other! Perfect. Just perfect! Why did I even bother trying to find them in the first place? I would have been fine on my own!

"Liz! Liz! Lizzie-Liz-Liz!" The sing-songy voice instantly calms me.

Suddenly I find myself in awe of how quickly tones can affect my emotions. One minute, I'm about to blindly start swinging punches, and the next I want to, completely disoriented by the light, reach out and awkwardly hug Patti. But instead, I clear my throat and mumble "I'm over here" so softly and choked up from emotions that I don't even know if they've heard me.

"Oh! Oh! Oh! I think I see her!"

I smile at my sister's excitement and attempt to position myself towards them. I try focusing on their footsteps to guess how far they are, but all I can really hear is how totally done Kid is with the situation.

"Doubtful, Patti." He sighs. "It's impossible to see anything out here."

"You don't know that!" Instinct to protect my sister takes over and the words come jumping out of my mouth all at once. "Maybe Patti has really great eyes, okay?"

"Unlikely." Kid murmurs mostly to himself. I can so clear picture his smug little face in my head I just really want to reach out and punch him…again. "Ah, there you are."

It takes longer than I'd like to admit for me to realize that the chaos has finally subdued. After what feels like an eternity, there are no more flashing lights. I blink wildly to myself, unable to focus on any one thing as my eyes adjust to the darkness of the night again. My palms are pressed firmly to the pavement, still bracing for an attack. But once I register the fact that two very familiar shadows are standing over me, I feel myself regaining confidence and I'm able to ease up and look at them. Kid is wearing the same smug look I imagined in my head with the added intensity of hatred in his golden eyes. Patti counters his anger with pure joy. The girl is beaming in a cheerful delight that is utterly intoxicating I can't help but mirror her. It takes some effort to glare at Kid, but it's effortless to smile kindly up at my sister.

"Hiya!" She chirps as Kid offers up his hand.

"We'll discuss you sneaking out later," he whispers to me "for now, let's figure out what's going on."

Stupid rich kid. I grit my teeth and swat his hand away.

"Yeah, whatever." I pout, I don't know why I feel the urge to explain myself, but I do. "I just needed some alone time, okay? It's a madhouse over there with your stupid obsession with symmetry and constant nagging. I just needed a break, okay?"

I can feel his eyes on me as I pull myself up and turn away. For once in her life, Patti is perfectly still. But she's not the only one. The whole night is mimicking her dull disposition. Not even crickets dare to break the silence.

"It's quiet." Kid remarks.

The way he says it is edgy and unsettling. I bite my lip and exhale through my nostrils. The rogue wind chills me to the bone and I almost feel like we're being watched. "Patti…" I draw out her name and start reaching for her. Something in the air shifts. I know I've felt this before. I know I have. And when I look at him, when I look at Kid, I know he senses it too. Something is coming.

I watch as he expands his arms and sucks in a deep breath. I squeeze Patti's hand and wait for the command. "Now!" He shouts, we transform and fall into his hands.


	3. -Patty- Tuesday -3:30 AM-

\- Patty - Tuesday - 3:30 AM -

I don't understand this nagging sensation pulling at my stomach. It's familiar, and not all that happy. I don't know. I feel icky all over- and not just because Kid is holding me in his sweaty little palms. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He's super cute when he's nervous and all, but his soul is totally freaked out! And he isn't the only one that's unnerved. My sister is losing her mind. I can feel her shifting uncomfortably in Kid's other hand and I can only imagine what she's thinking. I wonder if she feels it too. The yucky familiar pinch spreading through her bloodstream, just like me. We're close that way. At least, I think we are. I try harder to sense her soul, but come up empty handed. I hate admitting it, but we're not as close as we used to be. I didn't even know she snuck out tonight. Has she been doing that often? Why wouldn't she tell me or take me with her? Has she lost her trust in me? Suddenly, I'm filled with a whole new icky feeling. I don't like it all.

"Patty, focus!" Kid spits. I hadn't realized how lost in thought I was until his voice hit my eardrums. I smile brightly and try clearing my thoughts.

With a quick giggle, I chirp "Okie-dokie!" and let Kid swiftly race down the squiggly maze ahead.

I hate the phrase 'I don't know', but lately I'd been thinking it a lot. Like right now. Right now, I don't know what's happening. I don't know why the bright white light kept flickering around the city, like Death himself had been playing with a light switch. I don't know why people are screaming, and I don't know why Liz is so quiet and Kid is so focused. Too focused, in fact, to notice how uneven the roads are. I just don't know.

I try looking around to get rid of some of the 'I-don't-knows' in my life, and that's when I see it. The first shadow. Tall and slender, stretched out and hazy. Dancing. The shadow is dancing up walls and through allies in the street. I gawk at it, wondering what it's doing as it carefully dives into a nearby house. Immediately, a woman bolts through the door, the shadow is quick to chase her. And when it's stable hand reaches her, it transforms. I can't explain it, but somehow the shadow shape-shifts into a thousand sharp points and collides into her. Each spike pierces a piece of her body, and she explodes. Blood shoots out of every pointed wound and starts pooling at her feet. Her soul, blue and innocent, hovers just outside her now lifeless body. The shadow pulls back, regaining its barely human form. Gently, he places her on the ground and plucks the soul from the air. I expect the horrid beast to eat the soul, like so many other keishens we've encountered, but he doesn't. He cradles the soul into his chest and leaps upward, into the night.

"Did you see that?" Liz finally speaks, her voice shaking in horror. Kid freezes, closes his eyes, and takes a deep breath.

"Yes, I'm afraid I did." He murmurs under his breath. He takes a moment of silence to honor the dead woman, then starts back up in a brisk sprint.

By now, the entire city is under attack. Shrieking erupts from all different directs making my ears throb in pain. I know it's no time to complain, but I feel the words dribbling out of my mouth.

"Why is this happening?" I whine. "They need to stop crying! It's making my head hurt!"

"Patty, I really don't think they can help it!" Liz snaps. "And even if they could, that doesn't change the fact that the city is clearly going down the drain!"

I can't help but be wince at her words. I pout and grumble under my breath. I mean, really. She doesn't have to be so mean about it! Despite popular belief, I'm not an idiot.

"There!" Kid shouts, before I have time to catch what he's talking about he's pointing Liz and I at a shadow with its transparent hands wrapped around a man throat. For whatever reason, the man's feet haven't quite gotten the memo to stop running. They keep scrapping against the pavement as the shadow's hands turn into claws and start drawing blood from his flesh. Kid takes deadly aim at the beast and rapidly fires away. My soul stretches out, quickly forming into tiny bullets and shoots away at the gruesome monster. Unfortunately, our efforts are in vain. Each soul bullet slips right through the shadowy creature and hits the wall behind him. Right before our eyes, another innocent human is shredded and his soul, taken up-up and away into the dark night.

"I think I'm going to be sick!" Liz groans dry heaving just a little bit. I'm not sure if it's exaggerated or not, but I certainly don't want to find out.

"That was not very nice." I comment trying to keep my voice chipper despite everything, but I don't think it's helping much. Kid is staring at the man, his face pinched into a tight frown as he holds us loosely by his side. I don't know what he's looking at, but I can feel how sad his soul is. He's not use to failure. That much I'm certain of. And the screams echoing throughout the night just adds to the pain. It's hard to believe not even an hour ago, the city was quiet and clean. Now it's cluttered with monsters and stained by blood. And the air is filled with loud pleas for help. We need to think of another way to fight these things. But how?

"The symmetry...the symmetry..." Kid's voice is a broken record. His eyes widen in horror as he stares at the pooling blood. "The symmetry...it's off...it's off...So uneven...disgusting...awful...dreadful...disgraceful. I should have...I could have... prevented this tragic uneven blood spill."

Liz sighs and shakes her head very clearly annoyed with our master for being so focused on something that doesn't even matter. He drops to his knees and tears begin to form in his eyes as he babbles on and on about the nearly decapitated man lying dead in front of us and how unsymmetrical everything about this crime is. He's completely useless. Liz and I both know it, but neither of us quite know how to snap him out of his trace. I giggle awkwardly, she facepalms. Kid is stuck.

Something inside of me shifts. I don't want to be awake anymore. I don't want to feel the night or see the heartache and fear raging around me. I don't want to fight a battle that's losing. Like Kid, I want to crumble into myself and wake up later, when it's all over. I just want to slip

Slip

Slip

Away.

I close my eyes. I turn off the night. I let go of the cries. I let go of my thoughts, my brain, my emotions. And I turn on a smile. I pretend like I'm in a different world where everything is okay and no one is hurting or bleeding or dying. The shadows are friendly and want hugs. The blood is a glittery rainbow sprinkling the roads in good cheer. And I'm Queen of this land, spreading good cheer and happiness with songs and giggles.

I lose control of the ability to sense my sister's soul. All I can see now is a brighter, better world. I know she's talking; I know she's trying to reason with Kid. But I can barely hear her.

"Hey, Kid." Her voice is soft and somehow stern, like a mother speaking to a child. I stifle a laugh. It's actually really cute, I've never seen her use this approach with him before. I picture her in a pink dress, frilly and sparkly- something she'd totally hate- and I can see her smiling brightly, glowing with a maternal instinct I swear she was born without. "I need you to snap out of it, okay? I know this seems like the end of the world and everything, but surely there's some kind of symmetry out there, right?" She presses, I can't hold back my laughter. "I mean, there has to be. Try to find it, okay? Can you do that?"

Her speech doesn't work right away. He continues crying for a solid ten seconds, too engaged in the lack of perfection amongst us to fully grasp her words. I imagine him crying over a spilled ice cream cone. Staring at it in the middle of the street, wanting so badly to do something about it but not having the correct tools to actually help. The hopelessness is firm, but not soul crushing. Finally, he stiffens and lifts his head into the air. He notices something Liz and I don't and cautiously pulls himself to his feet. I imagine he's filtering through the screeches to try to find that symmetry he desperately needs for whatever reason, and he must have found it because in a hurry, he's racing through the city again. Looking for that ice cream shop to replace what he has lost.

"That's the spirit!" I squeal, letting go of my dream world piece by piece. "Yay!"

"Yay is right, Patty! That's what I'm talking about!" Patti agrees. Kid is determined. Laser vision eyes and everything. The bright magical world I created crumbles. Blood and death is everywhere.

I'm shocked to see him passing dead body after dead body. Shadow man after shadow man. I have 0 ideas as to where he's going, but he seems confident enough. Liz, not so much. "Hey, loser! Where do you think you're going?" She screams. "Can't you see people are dying?"

"Liz, shut up!" He screams right back at her. "I found the pattern. You were right! There _is_ symmetry out there and I know exactly where the pattern is going to end! I see it! It's so clear. So beautiful. So _perfect."_

My sister and I are speechless. Kid might be a lot of things. Adorable, annoying, and distracted to name a few. But above and beyond any of that, he is absolutely brilliant. We don't dare doubt him.


	4. -Death the Kid- Tuesday -3:58 AM-

\- Death the Kid - Tuesday 3: 58 AM -

The daylight will be coming soon. It's hard to imagine the vibrant sun shining through such complete and utter darkness. Logically speaking, of course there has to be an end to all this chaos. But here and now, in the _middle_ of it all, I can't see it.

I never really knew blood had a stench. Metallic, really. Like rain pouring onto an old rusted car. I crinkle my nose in disgust and keep running. My feet pounding on the crimson stained pavement, ignoring the putrid scent and the crippling desire to turn back around and fix the off-set symmetry.

I can feel Liz at my side questioning me. Wondering why I gave up so quickly on finding a way to stop the shadows. She's too stuck on the death around her to realize the shadows are nothing more than puppets sent to do someone's dirty work. She hasn't quite opened her eyes enough to see that they're collecting souls, not eating them, and taking them away to someone or some _thing_. It would be useless to try to fight the shadows knowing nothing about them except for the fact that- for whatever reason- they are immune to my soul bullets. _But_ I can hear the pattern of their attacks. The screams have a rhythm, a very precise and calculated sequence. And if I am correct, the final resting place of this…this _monster_ will be just around the corner.

I freeze and gape around the dirty ally. Nothing out of the ordinary about this place. It's cramped with old stuffed bags of trash and two overflowing dumpsters. But, now that I'm inside the ally, I can hear it clearer. The screams. Echoing around me in crisp surround sound. They're coming. I can feel it.

"Kid, what's going on?" Liz snaps. "Why are we here and not doing something helpful!"

"Shush!" I silence her, Patti laughs. "Look _up."_

Sure enough, my calculations are exactly correct. Leaping from every direction on the tops of buildings comes a flood of transparent humanoids cradling vivid blue souls in their hands. They dive down the brick buildings like birds to its prey, and stop suddenly around us. My pinkies twitch at the triggers, but I don't move and neither do they.

"Kid, what's going on?" Liz repeats frantically. "Why are they just staring at us?"

All at once, the shadows open their hands offering up the souls they collected. It takes a solid second for me to realize they aren't insisting on me to have them, but instead they're sacrificing them to the moon. The moon's gaping mouth opens and in one long breath, inhales the souls and shadow creatures. Out reflex, I cover my face with my arms shielding my eyes from the violent sucking breath. Patti and Liz panic. Their screams puncture my soul, but there's little I can do. The wind's picked up and it takes everything inside of me to plant myself firmly to the ground as the creatures, souls, and bags go flying past me head straight for the moon's bleeding mouth.

This only lasts a couple of seconds, but after vacuuming up the murderous creatures is complete, I feel drained. I collapse. Patti and Liz both gasp, but neither of them seem to have the energy to comfort me. All three of us sit in silence watching the moon. Waiting- waiting for some sort of sign, but we receive none.

I'm just about to give up and go home to rest when suddenly the moon disappears and turns into a giant, swirling, pitch black hole. The hole starts off small, about the side of my fist, but quickly expands clear across the sky enveloping anything unfortunate enough to get in its path. I grit my teeth tightly together and narrow my eyes. Of course, the hole is directly above us. But my legs are too tired to move.

"Kid, what are you doing?" Liz pleads. "Get up! Get up now! Run!"

I can hear how exhausted she is. Something in the moon stole our energy and she doesn't have the energy to shape-shift back to her human form. Patti is silent for once in her life and I can sense her retreating back into herself. Fear has nearly consumed her. I close my eyes, accepting fully whatever happens.

"Kid! No! Don't do this! Don't give up! You promised, remember? You promised to protect us and make us the best Death Weapons out there and we believed you!" Liz shouts louder. "You can't do this to us!"

My eyes shoot open. My legs, nearly liquefied, barely have enough strength to keep me standing. I stumble and suck in the sharp metallic air around me.

"I promised." I grumble under my breath. "I'll fight for you."

"Yeah, that's what I'm talkin' about!" Liz cheers. "Let's kick some ass!"

Patti wakes up from her trance and starts giggling, but to be honest, I've never felt so hopeless. It takes a real man to state when he's in over his head, and I'm drowning.

Black smoke puddles at my feet. My heart is racing. My blood ices over. Fear corrupts my system, but I chose to ignore it and instead focus on the black hole expanding across the sky. The smoke bellows out of the hole miles above my head and swirls around into a funnel slowly dropping down to touch the earth.

"Kid, we have to move." Liz reminds me, but suddenly I find myself wanting to see where this is going. The murderous monster is in there, I know it. And I want to make him pay. "Kid, I'm not kidding!" She's desperate to get my attention. "Don't you have an uneven picture frame you need to fix it something?"

My left eye twitches at the thought of such imperfection. My skin crawls. My stomach flips. I'm utterly disgusted, but it can wait. Something tells me I need to see this one through.

"Kid! We're running out of time! We need to move! Remember your promise!"

The smoke is inches away from the top of my head. In a second, I'll be consumed by it. But she's right, I did promise. And I'm a man of honor. A man of my word. I step away and the smoke explodes on the ground I once stood.

"That could have been us!" Liz spits. "We could have died!"

"Die! Die! Die!" Patti chuckles. I quiet their voices in my head.

Something's happening with the smoke. It's lingering and very slowly turning into an extremely tall human figure. My heart freezes and suddenly I've forgotten how to breathe. Electricity punctures the air, and the static stands my hair on ends. I can feel his soul. It's powerful. Much stronger than anything I've ever encountered. And pure untouched evil.

"Patti, shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Liz is loud, but Patti is louder. I want them both to be silent but I'm too paralyzed with fear to function. My head is throbbing and their voices begin to warp into gibberish. I can't focus. All I can do is stand frozen like an idiot and wait on my pending doom.

The worse thing about waiting for death is that everything seems to stop. Nothing else matters except my thoughts and all I can think about is my dad and how badly I wanted to impress him. How I wanted everything to be perfect. Too perfect. I wonder, in this dark hour, why I didn't see anyone fighting. No Meisters. No weapons. No father. Just me. And Liz. And Patti. Alone until the end.

I remember how to breathe again. But it doesn't calm me. The figure is almost solid and its power and darkness seem to be growing as well. At this point, even if I did run I wouldn't escape. I'd be hunted. And we'd be killed.

"Oh! Look! Shiny!" Patti giggles excitedly clapping her hands together. I follow her gaze to discover a shooting star galloping across the sky. It dives, brightly shimmering and gleaming with an unusual amount of hope until finally, it reaches the nearly complete figure. The star seems to be staring at me for a minute before it turns to the smoke. As if sensing the evil lurking beneath the veil, the start begins to inflate. As it does, the smoke starts to evaporate into its skin.

It's odd, to say the least. Almost like a battle of good and evil. The more smoke the star intakes, the less anxious I become and the more silent Liz and Patti are. The star is also growing, stretching out into a giant bright white and yellow light. Warm and gentle, like the sun. And so bright I have to shield my eyes.

I fall back, finally feeling at ease. The star, now full of smoke, shoots up into the black hole and explodes. Tiny lights like fireworks rain down and the moon returns. My jaw gapes wide open. I can feel the girls celebrating but I can't help the confusion sweeping over me. What the hell just happened? Did we really win? And if so, how?

I drop the guns. Liz and Patti take their human forms.

"What gives?" Liz growls rubbing her backside. "We won!"

"Did we?" I ask. She freezes. "Do any of us actually know what happened?" Again, she says nothing. I start pacing. "What does it mean?" I ask myself. "What does any of it mean?"

"Maybe it means you need to chill out." Liz spits sarcastically. I roll my eyes.

"Now it's not the time. People died today."

"But we won, didn't we?" Patti asks sweetly. "So everything is going to be okay, right?"

Liz crosses her arms and I don't say a word. Patti frowns and looks away. I contemplate comforting her, but something interrupts me. A stream of bright light shoots out of the moon. Patti and Liz ready themselves, and I narrow my eyes. The light beams down like a spotlight right in front of us and a small shadowy figure begins to take shape. Soon, the light fades and the figure drops to the ground. I hold my breath. Liz and Patti wait for me to speak, and when I don't, Patti does.

"I think it's a girl." She's states as-a-matter-of-factly.

"A. Girl?" Liz responds carefully drawing nearer to the figure. She crouches beside it and places a hand on the lump. The creature let's out a low moan. Liz jumps back. "It _is_ a girl!" she screeches "And she's very much alive!"

"Ew! And she's naked!" Patti remarks racing over to point and laugh at the poor thing.

I don't know why, but her 'naked' comment made me want to take a peek. I peered around the girls to see the motionless creature laying dully on the ground. My face immediately warm. I don't know what I was expecting, but she is very much naked. Very, very naked. Thankfully, most of her unmentionable parts are covered by her extremely long, almost too silky chestnut colored hair. Her skin, from what little I can see, is close to flawless with a lovely olive tint to it. Like she's been kissed by the sun. And she is frail. Like a deer. Thin, delicate, and fragile.

I take a second to admire her naked body and find myself wanting to get a better look. I wonder if she is symmetrical somehow. How does her left eye compare to her right eye? Is one nostril bigger than the other? Do her lips unusually curve at the corners?

It's at this moment, when I'm lost deep in my mind, when I got busted. "Kid! You perv!" Liz's voice is as sharp as knives. I try coughing and averting my eyes to mask the fact that I've been staring, but I'm too little too late. My nose is bleeding. Bleeding is actually being mild. A better way to phrase it would be to say "my nose is _gushing"._ Liz takes one look at my face and she's done. Her inner feminist comes raging out and in less than a second, her first is making contact with my face. I go soaring through the air.

"Come on, Patty." Liz sighs after I land clear across the ally. "Help me get her up. Let's take her home."

I didn't know which fact to be stuck on. The fact that I was punched and it actually really hurt. The fact that the girls are taking a nameless naked _creature_ home. Or the fact that Liz called my house her home for the first time ever. I'm in the middle of contemplating this when Liz stops, sweep's the girl's hair out of her face, and gaps.

"Wait a second…" She hums. "Helena?"


	5. Chapter Two

\- Helena - Day One – Early Morning -

"She's not just some person!" A girl is screaming on the other side of the door. Her voice is heavily annoyed and caught between a screech and a growl. I can tell she's at least putting _some_ effort in trying to whisper, but she's way too fired up to actually succeed. "She-she's a-"

"A what? Friend?" I can only imagine the smug look on the second voice's face. There's a certain condescending tone ringing in it. It's undoubtedly male, but young. Maybe early teens? I shake my head and prop myself up on my elbows and wait for the conversation to continue. They've been bickering for what feels like hours and there seems to be no sign of them letting up any time soon.

"Yeah." The girl grumbles after a beat. "But-but more like family! Haven't you ever cared about anyone?" Silence. Finally, she scoffs. "Right. I forgot. You don't _have_ friends. You don't _have_ anyone. You're a paranoid little piece of-"

"Enough, Liz!" The boy spits. It stops her in her tracks. Even more, it's enough to make _me_ jump. "I will NOT have you speaking to me in such a disrespectful manner in my home. Or have you forgotten this was in fact _my_ home?"

"How could I forget?" She's right back on him. Same intensity as before and I've got to admit, I respect her for that. "You only mention it every second of the day. It's like you're holding it over my head, dangling it in my face like I _owe_ you or something! But then, oh man!" She stops to shoot off a sarcastic laugh. I can hear the boy shifting uncomfortably. "Then, you actually have the nerve to tell me this is _my_ house too and to make myself at home. But, no. The second I bring someone in you flip your cap and-"

"And ask you to reconsider." He cuts back in. The two are at war. I know they're arguing about me, but I'm not quite sure why. My mind is mush. Muddied up in a deep fog making it nearly impossible to hold onto any of my thoughts. I can't remember anything. Not my name, age, family- it's all just a deep, thick haze. And so, I listen to the only people who might have any kind of clue and hope eventually they'll make a grand entrance and introduce themselves like proper human beings.

"I don't _need_ to reconsider." The girl, Liz, sighs. I purse my lips. "Why don't you get that? I know her. Patty and I both do. Don't you trust us?"

"I trust logic and reason." The boy doesn't hesitate to speak, which strikes an unsuspecting nerve in me. "You haven't seen her in how long? If this really is your 'friend', what makes you think she's still the same person you once knew? What if she-"

"What if she's the one who started the attack?" Liz groans. "Kid, we've been through this a thousand times. I know it's a possibility. I get that. Despite whatever belief you have in that thick skull of yours, I'm not an idiot. I just think it's better we keep her here. With us. I mean, think about it. If she was the cause of the attack, aren't we the most capable of keeping her under control? And if she's not, doesn't she need our help? I mean, we found her naked for crying out loud! What could she be hiding?"

Naked? I carefully peel the covers away from me and let out a muffled sigh of relief. Someone, probably Liz, took the time to dress me in extremely baggy clothes. I take a couple of seconds to examine my body and frown. My skin is completely smudged up with dirt and- wait a second- is that me that smells like garbage? I crinkle my nose in disgust and slap the covers back over my body. Liz might have been kind enough to dress me, but she sure didn't bathe me. I stink!

"Very well." Wait, what? Was that the boy…agreeing to let me stay? "We'll keep an eye on her until we talk to my father. He might have some answers. But I do see your logic now, Liz. Don't leave her alone. I'm going to do some research at the library. You and Patty make sure she's properly interrogated."

"You mean taken care of?" Liz asks.

"No. I mean interrogated. We need answers, and she's the only one who has them."

 _"May_ have them." Liz corrects. "Something tells me she's as clueless as the rest of us."

"Perhaps." The boy hums. "I'll be back tonight for dinner."

Interrogated? But I don't have any answers! I don't even remember the damn attack! I hear a single set of footsteps echoing down the hall. My heart is beating wildly inside of my chest, threatening to explode out of me at any given second. Anxiety floods my system. The conversation is over and I am a prisoner. What happens when they find out I don't have what they're looking for? Where will I go? What will I do? What will happen to me? What _is_ happening to me!

"Kid?" My skin crawls. Liz is beckoning him back. The footsteps stop. "She doesn't have any clothes. Can Patty and I take her shopping?"

"What? No. Don't leave the house."

God, no. Not another argument. Please, no. I pull the covers over my head and hide, hoping to block out their voices under the thin protection of the covers. I already have enough problems, I don't need them creating any more.

"Okay." Liz voice is hinting at a plan. I let my muscles relax. "Have it your way. I guess she'll just have to walk around naked."

"N-naked?" He stammers.

"Oh, yeah. I mean, Patty and I are not exactly the same built as her, if I know what I mean. All our clothes will slip right off of her. Or worse, slip off unsymmetrically to one side. And your clothes? Don't make me laugh. But, suit yourself."

The door knob jiggles a little, like she's about to throw it open and step in, but the movement is a little too theatrical. She's playing him.

"Unsymmetrical? No! No! Don't even speak the filth!" The boy immediately crumbles without putting up a fight at all. My jaw completely unhinges. Who is this guy? "Yes, please! Go shopping! God, I can't get the image out of my head! It burns me! Make it stop! Take all the money you need! Just, please. Make sure you keep her symmetrical."

"Awe, thanks Kid! You're fantastic! I'll get Patty right away!"

A lighter pair of footsteps flutter down the hall in the opposite direction leaving me sitting utterly dumbfounded. What the hell just happened? It took what, an hour? For them to fight about letting me stay, but fifteen seconds for them to decide to let me go shopping? Wow. Priorities.

"No. No. No. No. No." The poor boy sounds like he his entire universe was just destroyed right before his eyes. He just keeps repeating the word 'no' over and over again while sobbing. And in-between breaths I can barely manage to hear broken sentences surrounding 'symmetry this' and 'perfection that'. The boy has totally lost his mind.

I sigh heavily to myself and discard the sheets sloppily to the right side of the bed. I nod to myself taking note of the room around me. It's totally boring. The walls are a dull eggshell white with deadly black trim. There's two windows, one on each side of me, and a door directly across the small twin-sized bed. Black as well. The floor mirrors the ceiling. Elegant white marble. And there's wall candles everywhere. Twelve total. Three on each wall, strategically spaced out…symmetrically. Yep, the guy has a complex. One that seems to make my right eye twitch. Everything is too…too perfect. And lifeless. Where is the color? Where is the vibrant splashes of yellow, blue, green, red? Where is my rainbow? My light. My…joy?

I throw my legs off the side of the bed and let them dangle a bit before sliding off. My bare feet are greeted by the coolness of the floor and I take a second to wiggle my toes before padding along the room. The more I circle it, the more boring it gets. I don't know what it is, but I want to ever so slightly tilt the candles to the side and gently angle the bed away from the door. The perfection of it all gives me a migraine. It just doesn't feel lived in. At all.

"Liz! Liz! Liz! Liz! Lizzie! Liz! Liz!" Comes a bouncing sing-songy voice. "I can't believe today! It's like I've eaten an entire rainbow and all of the sunshine."

"That means you're happy, right?" Liz asks entirely too unenthused.

"What else would rainbows and sunshine be?" The other girl giggles mostly to herself. Liz groans and the door knob jiggles, then rotates and the door pops open. Staring at me on the other side are two girls I assume are sisters. One: tall, slender, long dusty blonde hair, and cold blue eyes. Two: short, curvy, shoulder-length yellow blonde hair, and joyful blue eyes. I awkwardly raise my hand to them and shoot them a sheepish smile.

"Hello?" Is that my voice? It's…surprisingly low. I touch two fingers to my throat and blink frantically. Confusion slips clear across the two girls faces. I smack my lips together still trying to figure out my voice. "Hello!" I try again, this time a little higher. I sound like a child. "Hello." I settle on something in-between, but it still sounds funny. I lick my lips and fumble around for something more to say, but draw a blank. The short haired girl giggles and hides behind her sister. I purse my lips.

"Uh, Helena, you feelin' alright?" The tall girl asks. I can feel my face puzzle at her. Helena? Who the heck is that? "Helena?"

It takes a lot longer than I'd like to admit to realize that she's referring to me, which of course makes the second girl laugh even harder. All I can think to do is nod at them. Cautiously, they enter one at a time. The tall girl not taking her eyes off of me, not even for a second. I forget how to breathe. The room turns hostile, but not like they want to attack me. No, like they're trying to figure me out as I try figuring them out.

The short haired girl flops on the bed and starts singing to herself while the tall girl pops out her hip and crosses her arms over her chest. I suddenly remember how to breathe and start gasping for air which only makes the long haired girl more curious.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" She asks. Again, I'm at a loss for words. "You look totally clueless."

"Clueless! Clueless! Helena is clueless!" The other girl sings kicking her legs wildly in the air.

"Helena." I mutter to myself. It sounds oddly familiar, but unfortunately doesn't ring any bells.

"Do you-" the tall girl stops herself and frowns. "You _don't_ remember anything, do you?"

I shrug. The short haired girl laughs, and I start to smile. I can feel the tall girl start to shrink into herself, the look of defeat creeps across her slender frame.

"Kid is not going to like this." She mutters to herself.

"Yeah, it'll be okay, though!" The shorter girl chirps shooting up from the bed. "Don't worry Liz!"

Liz, the tall girl, forces a smile but it's fake. The other girl, who I assume is Patty, reflects her face. Two fake smiles sandwhich me and I have no idea what is going on. They seem to share this odd bond, one where they don't have to speak a lot of words in order to communicate with each other. And Liz, the tall one, has an unusual sixth sense about identifying a situation.

"Alright, spill. What do you know." Liz's laser vision eyes phase right through me. Patty rolls her eyes.

"Come on, Helena," She pouts, "tell her you're not, like, a total icky bad guy."

"Where have you been?" Liz asks ignoring Patty's question. "And why haven't you aged in ten years?"

"Were you the star last night?" Patty asks. "It felt like you and shared the same soul color as you."

"Do you know what was happening last night? Why people died? Did you cause the black rain and flashing lights?"

"Were you kidnapped?"

Question after question continued to hit me until their voices disappeared in my mind. My head is throbbing and I can't breathe again. Try as I might, I can't seem to find any kind of memory. It's all just…white.

"She doesn't look so good." Patty notes tangling her fingers together. Liz pouts out a lip and leans into me. Despite her hard outer appearance, I can tell she's worried.

"Helena!" She asks snapping her fingers in front of my face. I wobble. She continues snapping. "Speak to me!"

But I can't. The room blurs into one giant gray blob and I collapse.

 **Author's Notes:**

Hey guys! Thank you so much for all of your incredible love and support. I love you all so very much. Again, if you can't get enough of this story, Wattpad has waaaaay more! I'm playing catch up right now...which sucks. Ha ha! Well, enjoy! More to come. P.S: Sorry for the delayed updates. Life has been supper crazy.

Peace, Love, & Memories,

thehugbandit


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